Replacing Ralph
by ScorplinginTraining
Summary: Some things in life are priceless. A quick little story of plotless father/son fluff.


**REPLACING RALPH**

 **AN: Fluuuuufffff! I need fluff to help me through the anxiety over the Season 4 finale without the reassurance of a Season 5. Review if you can relate!**

 **xyxyxyxyxyx**

"Mind if I join you, Buddy?"

The garage roof had become one of the teen's favorite brooding places recently. Walter approached the young man cautiously, not wanting to test his tolerance as he seemed to have remarkably little of it these days.

Ralph was slouched on top of the picnic table, his feet resting on the bench seat. His laptop was open in his lap, illuminating his face. The rest of him was in silhouette given that the sun had long since sunk below the western horizon and he hadn't bothered turning on the work lights.

"Do I have any choice?" Ralph sneered without looking up from his screen, his fingers typing rapidly.

Walter tried not to take the inattention or the snarky response personally as he settled in beside the boy's lanky form. "Um, it's nice and clear out tonight. Want me to set up the telescope?" He smiled hopefully.

The tapping of the keys halted momentarily while Ralph sighed gustily and cut his eyes in Walter's direction. "You can do what you want, I guess. It's a free country." Flashing a contemptuous face at Walter and shrugging, he turned his shoulder to the older genius and resumed typing.

Tamping down his irritation, Walter tried once again. "What're you working on?"

Ralph's fingers paused again. "It's nothing. Just a stupid assignment for one of my classes, okay?" Everything about his posture screamed, ' _just_ _leave me the hell alone'_.

Patience at an end, exasperation evident in his voice, the older man blurted, "I don't get it. I know I'm still pretty clueless about relationships and emotional stuff, but I can't apologize or make up for it unless I know what it is I'm supposed to have done. You've been avoiding me for weeks. And when I do catch up with you, you act like you can't stand to be around me. You wanna help me out here and give me a hint? What did I _do_?"

Underneath the frustration was a whole world of hurt. It radiated through Walter with each sarcastic comment and every eye roll. He and Ralph had always been close. They used to be able to talk about anything or nothing, working or playing side-by-side in perfect symbiosis. Not to mention, the boy used to idolize him. He was worried whatever he did or said somehow made things irreparable between them.

"Nothing. It's not a big deal." Ralph's jaw was set stubbornly. Walter took it as a minor victory when the boy's eyes met his directly for the first time.

He switched to a different tactic, his tone softening. "It _is_ a bit deal if you're this upset with me. Do you remember me telling you I don't like how it feels when you're mad at me? What can I do to fix this?"

The younger genius glowered and looked away, but not before Walter glimpsed the unmistakable sign of tears gathering in his eyes.

"I don't guess it's your fault. It's science." Ralph rasped, his voice sounding thick.

"What's not my fault?" Walter prompted, "You can tell me."

Ralph cleared his throat. "You don't need me around anymore." His answer was little more than a whisper.

Patently astounded and stunned into silence, it was a minute before Walter could garner up the words for a reply. "That's simply not true. Where would you get an idea like that?"

"Ever since you found out Mom's pregnant, you keep telling anyone who will listen that you're going to have a kid of your own soon. I guess I was just a handy place holder for a while, huh?"

"No!" The word burst out of Walter's mouth, then he continued more calmly, "Nothing could be farther from the truth."

Ralph raised a dubious eyebrow, his mouth compressing into a thin, skeptical line.

"Wh-what?… Don't you understand? You're the whole reason I decided being more human was worthwhile in the first place. When I saw you in the diner that day, I saw myself. I connected with you right away and I decided I couldn't stand by and let you struggle the way I did. I immediately wanted better for you. You were my initial foray into empathy. I wouldn't have _any_ of this if it weren't for you. Not your mom, not a cohesive team, not meaningful friendships, and certainly not your brother or sister. None of it. Don't you see? I loved _you_ first. Even before I loved your mom. Maybe I could've chosen my words more carefully when referring to the new baby, but I want you to know, I could _never_ replace you. It's impossible. I never thought I'd hear myself say this about anything, but what we are, what we have with each other, it transcends science."

"You really mean that?" Ralph closed his laptop and set it aside, turning toward Walter. He cocked his head to one side and scanned the older genius' face as if looking for deception markers.

Walter smiled ruefully. "I only state facts, remember? If you want the complete truth, I'm pretty terrified of this whole endeavor. Your mom is so confident, but I'm not. The only reason I'm not panicking right now is because of our relationship. Yours and mine. I keep thinking if you've turned out this great in spite of my influence, maybe your sibling will have a decent chance to be okay. Of course that was what I thought before you got so mad at me. Trust me. I can't do this without you. I never could. And I have no clue what I'm going to do if this kid turns out to be normal."

Ralph grinned and bumped his shoulder against Walter's. "Mom'll have to translate for both of us, I guess."

They shared a knowing smile.

After a pause, Ralph said, "Hey, thanks. And for the record, I loved you first too."

Walter blinked rapidly to dispel the moisture gathering in his own eyes.

He was grateful when Ralph spoke up again, "So, are you going to set up that telescope, or what?"


End file.
